State aid for economic activities (companies)

The rules on state aid apply to organizations that carry out economic activities. When we grant funding to these organisations, we do so with the support of one of these:

• EU Commission Block Exemption Regulation (GBER)
• The government's regulation on support of minor importance (de-minimis)

That is why the rules on state aid exists

EU state aid rules set the framework for member states' ability to support activities with public funds.

The rules are based on the main principle of EU law that government support to organizations that carry out economic activities normally distorts competition. But there are exceptions - including certain support for research, development and innovation.

Vinnova's regulations on government support can be found in the government's regulation (2015:208) on government support for research and development and innovation, also called the "Support Regulation". It refers to the European Commission's General Block Exemption Regulation ( support ) and the Commission's De minimis Regulation.

Support scheme: Regulation on state support for research and development and innovation (SFS 2015:208)Commission block exemption regulation (GBER) 651/2014

What counts as economic activities?

The rules on state support only apply if the beneficiary is a company. In the rules, companies are defined as organizations that carry out economic activities. The definition is therefore not dependent on the company's legal status or how the company was financed.

The European Court of Justice has ruled that all activities that involve offering goods and services on a market constitute economic activities. It is therefore not the company's form, profit motive, owners, compensation or membership fees that are decisive.

This means that even non-profit organizations can be classified as economic activities if they offer goods and services on a market.

Support levels for state aid according to GBER

The rules on government support in GBER mean that we can provide funding for certain types of activities or projects project. The proportion of the project costs that we finance is called aid intensity or funding rate. It is expressed as a percentage.

The aid intensity we can provide depends on the size of the organization and the type of project it applies to. Smaller companies often have more opportunities to get support. To calculate how big a company is, the EU's definition of small and medium-sized companies is applied.

We usually also require an own financial contribution from the person who receives funding. It is sometimes called own funding or co-financing. If the co-financing consists of other public funds, it may affect our ability to finance the project.

The rules on state support give us a framework for what is allowed, but we can provide less support than the rules allow.

Support levels, definitions, etc. for funding according to Vinnova's support schemeThis is how the EU defines small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)
Template model declaration SME

Minor Support

In addition to support according to GBER, we can provide support according to the regulation on minor support (EU 2023/2831). This type of support is also called de minimis support. If we grant support of minor importance in a offer, this is stated in the call text and in the decision. 

How much minor support can we provide?

Maximum permitted support of minor importance is 300,000 euros per recipient during the last three years. In order to calculate the maximum allowable support, all funding granted under the Ordinance on minor support must be added together. funding for other parts of the group must also be included in this calculation. However, if you have received support according to GBER, you should not count on this.

Example: If a company received support of 50,000 euros in the first year, we can grant a maximum of 250,000 euros in the second year. In the third year, the same company cannot receive any support of minor importance. In the fourth year, we can grant 50,000 euros. If you as a beneficiary are part of a group, you need to enter all support of minor importance within the group.

Leave certificate of previous funding

Anyone applying for minor support must submit a statement of how much support of this type they have been granted in the three previous years.

Declaration about other de minimis aid